ABSTRACT
Whereas the previous section provided a descriptive analysis of its territory of tourism knowledge, this section problematises tourism knowledge. Drawing on the sociology of knowledge, it focuses particularly on culture, power, hegemony, ideology and value freedom. Sociologists suggest that knowledge is not independent of, but rather is conditioned by, the particular culture or society in which it is produced. Mannheim (1960) argued that different groups in society experience the world in different ways and have competing claims as to what is knowledge. In this view, knowledge loses its claim to being an objective account of the world, and there is no universal epistemology. An example of this is found in the work of Whittaker (1999), who investigates the issue of indigenous tourism and specifically considers the challenge of reclaiming knowledge, culture and intellectual property in Australia. Whittaker investigates the moral claims of indigenous people (Aboriginal Australians), and the political and social implications that these have for the tourist industry and for knowledge industries. One of his findings is that the depiction of Aborigines in tourist literature is exploitative and racist, based upon and perpetuating historicised images of Aboriginal groups. In other words, here tourism knowledge about indigenous people is generated within a Western (developed) culture with a history of colonialism. The knowledge which is offered about them is different from the knowledge they would offer about themselves. It is generated from different traditions, and different knowledge traditions would result in (possibly radically) different projections and understandings of the world or its inhabitants. Similarly, Hollinshead (1999a) argues that postmodern ‘nationalist’ tourism acts as a coding machine serving the interests of certain privileged groups. Perhaps one way out of this cultural bind is offered by Ryan (2000), who argues that phenomenography is a potent method of tourism research because of its concern with individuals’ understanding. Ryan also suggests that the use of phenomenographic analysis is consistent with the epistemology of modes of research which extend beyond positivism.
